The disturbing allegation that the LPD may have covered up an alleged drinking and driving incident involving one its own could bolster officers' claims of corruption within the department. The Daily Advertiser reported Friday that attorneys Stephen Spring and Christopher Alexander, who represent nine officers alleging widespread corruption in the Lafayette Police Department, are asking state district court to force LPD officials to turn over documents and audio recordings they say confirm officials covered up the alleged drunk driving of off-duty police officer Jeremy Dupuis.
In an attempt to prove their original allegations, the attorneys filed a public records request for those documents, and claim LPD officials broke the law by not turning over all of the requested materials. According to the Advertiser's report:
In their petition, the attorneys claim Dupuis and other LPD officers enjoyed a night of drinking on Oct. 4, including illegal after-hours alcohol consumption at City Bar in downtown Lafayette that led to the bar owner being cited for a misdemeanor violation, which was ultimately dismissed.
Dupuis then allegedly left the bar and went to the McDonald's on Johnston Street near the University of Louisiana at Lafayette's campus. A restaurant employee called 911 to report a drunken driver "passed out behind the wheel of his vehicle." The driver, Dupuis, allegedly left the engine running as he lost consciousness and was "armed with his LPD issued firearm."
When LPD officers responded to the 911 call, the officers allegedly gave Dupuis a ride home and initiated a shift-level investigation rather than launching an Internal Affairs investigation, which is typically used to address more serious problems within the department. Spring and Alexander also claim a handful of officers lied in official statements about the incident to help protect Dupuis.
The attorneys also have an audio recording that allegedly captures LPD Chief Jim Craft discussing the incident, and Craft admits in the recording that Dupuis was drunk enough to possibly kill someone while driving. The alleged incident, however, resulted in only a one-day suspension and no formal criminal charges for Dupuis, according to Spring and Alexander.
Read the story here.